Chickens

 

Chickens are appearing in a local laneway but the mural is still in progress so I will have to go back. It is always fun to see the work as it continues on. There was no sign of the artist around.

Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world.  

Apartment Balconies

 

Continuing with my discovery of balconies around town I offer this small apartment building on Palmerston Blvd. The units that have a balcony are lucky and have nice shady spots that would be cool even on a warm day. And it is a great street.

Porch Creature

Earlier in the summer I showed you cutouts of animals found on steel panels around a front porch. At the time I didn't show this wonderful elephant that is also on the porch. He made a fine addition to the others.

Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world.
 

A Cooler Day

 

It is hard to tell that that is a small wading pool in the middle of this pic but it is there and usually in the summer it would be full of toddlers running around in it. This was a cooler day and no one was tempted to get wet. The city always has a couple of staff members supervising but as you can see, the young woman in green had nothing to do. The next day it was hot when I happened to go by and there was a lot of activity in the pool.

Beauty

 

This beautiful Hibiscus flower was spotted on a plant for sale at a corner store and I was tempted but have had little luck growing them inside during the winter so I left with just this pic.

Play At The Park

Boxes similar to this one have appeared at many parks around the city. Sponsored by Canadian Tire stores they are linked to an app that allows you to access the equipment for free and play and then return the equipment when finished. The things provided depend on what facilities are in the park so some have soccer balls, volleyball balls and others like this one have paddles and balls to be used on the park ping pong table. It is a great idea.

Taking part in Signs2. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world.
 

In Bloom

Just a bit of info to go with yesterday's mural. It sounds like it was a nice community event resulting in the mural.
 

Neighbourhood Mural

 

This mural was in the windows of yesterday's grocery store and references many of the sights to be seen in the Dupont St area such as the domed subway entrance and even Casa Loma off on the far left side. And of course there are raccoons on the  right side. I will show you the sign at the right tomorrow.

Taking part in Monday Murals.Click HERE to see more murals from around the world.

Filling The Bus

 

The TTC and Loblaws (a grocery chain) had a charity event in support of Second Harvest which is an organization that redistributes surplus food to places it is needed. Shoppers could buy prepackaged bags of food essentials which were then loaded into a TTC bus to "Stuff The Bus". When I went by the bus was over half full and there was still lots of bags to be loaded on.

Resting Up

 

Sometimes on a warm afternoon you just have to take a break and this squirrel was resting up before it could start foraging for treats again. It is a busy time of year for them with everyone's veggie gardens full of nice ripe produce.

Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world. 

Fine Building

 

This building on Dupont St was built in 1914 for Ford Motor company as an assembly plant. There were offices on the bottom 2 floors then assembly and painting on the next 3 floors and then the vehicles went up to the roof where there was a test track if you can believe it. Ford moved in 1925 and then several different companies used the space until Planter Peanuts took over in 1948 and had their Canadian head office and processing facilities here until 1987. Today it is owned by Faema who are commercial espresso machine suppliers. Much of the building is rented out as offices and studios. It has been wonderfully restored and maintained and has heritage designation. A fine building.

Better View

 I was walking along a laneway that runs beside this house and spotted this great window. A perfect solution for a not very nice view. It must look great when the room is lit up at night.

Who Knew?

 

I had no idea that tufting had become popular so much that studios were opening until I saw this place that has opened recently. I didn't really know what it was and thought it was like the rug hooking of olden days but apparently it uses guns that fire tufts of fabric through a framed design and then the ends are trimmed. I guess that you discover new things every day. 

Taking part in Signs2. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world. 

Nice Ride

 

This is not what I think of when I think of a Jaguar but it certainly has nice sleek lines. I couldn't resist stopping for a pic.

Seasons Changing

 

I liked this tree showing the change of seasons as you move from left to right. The parked bikes suggest that a family of four has been out for a nice ride. Unfortunately there was no artist info.

Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world. 

Hydrangea

 

There are some beautiful blooms around at this time of year and this Hydrangea growing along a busy street was particularly lovely. The whole bush was covered in these wonderful flowers.

UFO

 

I have been seeing this insect on various plants and surfaces for the last week but haven't figured out what it is. It looks a bit like a fly and a bit like some type of bee. Any ideas?

Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world. 

Stylish Bench

 

This bench in Mirvish Village stopped me in my tracks. At first I thought that is was in mid construction but realized that this is the finished design. It is unusual but still works well as a bench. I like it.

Balconies

 

  

I seem to be spotting balconies everywhere that I walk lately. This house has to win the prize for the biggest ones on a house. I assume that the place is divided into flats and each has its own walkout.

Leather Aid

 

The Sandal Man does a great job advertising his place. There are signs like this around town and he even puts ads on the city buses sometimes.

Taking part in Signs2. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world. 

Cosmos & Friend

 

I love Cosmos and always plant some although these ones had seeded themselves from last year. The bees all love them and I have often seen hummingbirds on them but not this year so far. On the right you can see my little steel bird friend who enjoys the flowers too.

City Creatures

 

I love this stylized mural of our city creatures enjoying a break. The raccoon is in charge of the coffee while the black squirrel and Canada Goose drink up. The only artist info is AS.

Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world. 

Round Balcony

 

I love this round balcony that I spotted on this large house in the Annex neighbourhood. Can't you just imagine sitting out there on a warm evening in the summer with a cold drink while you watch the world go by?

Snack Time

I just managed to catch this shot of the female Cardinal just be fore she flew off so she is a bit out of focus. I think she was being protective of her snack since there were a bunch of sparrows foraging around her. Not as bright as the males they are still pretty birds. 

Taking part in Saturday's Critters. Click HERE to see more creatures from around the world.
 

Restoration

 

I am staying along the same block in the city this week. This building is just a couple of doors down from the park with the fountain that you saw yesterday and shows the age of the rest of the street. Some are already open but this one is still being worked on. Friends had a studio for many years in the lower level at the right. It will be interesting to see who all the new tenants on the street will be.

Fountain In Action

 

On Monday you could see this fountain in front of the starry mural but there was no water spraying. I happened by again a few days later and one of the construction workers surprised me by pushing a button and then water spouted out of the pavement and into the fountain. It was windy though and and the water was spraying me and my camera so I moved away. I will have to go back again on a still day for more shots now that I know about the magic button.

In the background you can see the building I showed on Tuesday with the front opened up. This shows it closed. 

Coming Soon

 

I am still on the redevelopment site of the old Honest Ed's location. You can see in this drawing a bit of the scale of the development with the construction of several tall rental apartment buildings as well as the refurbishment of the old Victorian buildings along Markham St. It occupies a square city block and the whole thing is called Mirvish Village after Honest Ed himself who was Ed Mirvish. It looks like there are lots of activities to come in the neighbourhood.

Taking part in Signs2. Click HERE to see more signs from around the world.

A Bit Of A Mystery

 

Just  across the road from yesterday's parkette in the Honest Ed's complex is this rather mysterious building. With a group of high rises as a backdrop it is short and the front of it folds open like a garage door. I have no idea what it will become but I would guess that it will be some type of community activity centre. It is still under construction.

Stary Wall

 

The redevelopment of the old Honest Ed's site has been going on for several years but they have finally been opening some businesses and this is a parkette along Markham St which has a stage area, plantings, and this great mural which has no artist info. That is a fountain on the right side but it wasn't turned on when I was there.

Taking part in Monday Murals. Click HERE to see more murals from around the world. 

More Balconies

 

This condo building on Dupont St has been under construction for a few years but it looks like some people have moved in and there are flowers on a couple of the balconies. It is the curvy balconies that give this building some style.

Theme Day: Purple

 

The August theme for the City Daily Photo Blog community is purple and for this theme I offer this rare purple speckled fish which I made in earthenware about 20 years ago. There aren't very many of them around. This is also my entry for the Saturday's Critters meme.

Taking part in the Purple theme. Click HERE to see more purple from around the world. 

Click HERE to see more critters from around the world.